April 03, 2002

Iron, Lion, Zion.

After a few days in Flagstaff, I decided to make use of my National Parks Pass that I bought at the Grand Canyon and head to Zion National Park. Once again I am amazed at another national park. The views are incredible.

On the hidden canyon trail I started talking to another lone hiker, Chris. He was spending a few weeks traveling throughout the U.S. before beginning work at Yellowstone. We ended up hiking the rest of the trail together, talking about everything from work to favorite books to South Carolina, where he was from. It's always fun to meet a stranger.

I thought about staying in Zion another night so that I could do a little more hiking that day, but I decided I really was anxious to head home. So after a relatively full day of hiking I left Zion and spent the night just south of Salt Lake City. I figured I deserved a shower and to totally relax, so I bucked up for a hotel room for the first time on the trip. Well worth it.